Drought Photo | TrekEarth

Photographer’s Note

This shot is of Lake Windamere in NSW. We drove past it on our way to the Warrumbungles. I was astonished at the graphical impact this place had.
The shot is taken from the lake bed a solid 5-10 meters under normal height. The trees in the shot would normally only have a twig reaching out of the water, but the drought in Australia has been going for many years now and the lakes and creeks don't hold much water anymore.

Alternate View

This image has been desaturated (13%) in master and given a boost of 20% in blue hues.
I burnt and dodged some detail into the cracks and trees and made a vignette to give focus to the centre (righthand) of the shot.

Cato

alonsote, Flavia, cmoraru, JPlumb has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Robpulp (937) 2006-12-13 21:45

great shot, i really like the cracked mud,leads into the photograph really effectivly. good work

rob

Flavia (10202) 2006-12-13 21:50

Hi Cato,

Visually strong this image. Even tragedy seems to have its beauty. You're right the graphic impact of the cracked earth is very nice. The post processing was very well done to add more interest to the sky and direct the focus. A very nice composed and exectuted image.

Regards,

Flavia

Cormac (26449) 2006-12-13 21:55

I really like the texture in this, with the dried lake making a very interesting pattern. The dead trees add to the sense of desolation, and the sky darkens out nicely. Well done!

julienventrap (401) 2006-12-13 22:01

Funny how the picture I posted after you ressembles yours... but with a different matter, you it's sand after water, mine is ice after water !
I like the vignette effects, it adds to the depth of the picture and helps concentrate on the subject in the center. Great picture

fayeulle (26543) 2006-12-13 22:02

Hi Cato
I lake very much the pattern of the dry mud in the FG. In a different way it's look like the deadvlei in Namibia 1000 yers ago.
Cjheers
JP

cmoraru (557) 2006-12-13 22:40

Hi Cato,
Very nice image, the texture of the dried mud is amazing, I also find fascinating the quite clear separation line behind the cracked mud, it almost suggests a collage. Together with the trees, it has indeed a strong impact. Great work, thanks for sharing as well as discussing the PP.
Cheers,
Catalin

vedra (0) 2006-12-14 3:16

Hi Cato,
Wow, this really look apocalyptic! The trees look like a piece of abstract art. The composition is well chosen.
Vedrana

bibs69 (3243) 2006-12-14 4:11

Hello Cato,

Nice view :) The ground is really impressive and you captured it very well. I like your post-processing, specially the vignetting (for this kind of picture).

Best regards, Laurent.

vapours (7913) 2006-12-14 4:27

Hey Cato, a very similar scene to the image I have just uploaded. Love the contrast in the dry grey ground against the rest of the lake and the blue sky. Top stuff.

JPlumb (3153) 2006-12-14 18:16

Hi Cato, this is a very good shot. Nothing brings the situation here with the drought home faster than a graphical shot like this. Your detail (texture) and colour are great. Your PP work on top of the photo has been done very well.

Thanks, John

euryan (8345) 2006-12-15 14:18

The dried, cracked mud makes for an interesting foreground. I like the dead trees silhouetted by the sky as well. Perfect title.
Regards,
Ryan

onmax (837) 2007-01-14 20:47

Excelente la composicion, los colores, los detalles, la luz y la posicion de la camara.
Felicitaciones por tan interesante imagen.
Saludos